Anglian Water CEO supports call for tougher carbon neutral targets

02 May 2019

News

Anglian Water Chief Executive Peter Simpson has today spoken out in support of the Committee on Climate Change’s advice to the Government for more ambitious climate targets.

He is also the only water company CEO to sign a letter from The Prince of Wales's Corporate Leaders Group to all European Heads of State and Government to urge them to endorse an EU strategy for climate neutrality by 2050.

Peter said: “We have seen first hand how ambitious carbon targets can disrupt established practice, drive innovation, and significantly reduce costs and environmental impacts. Anglian has already made huge strides towards becoming a carbon neutral business by 2050. In 2010 we set industry leading carbon targets for 2020. By 2015 we had already beaten those targets.

“Our customers have told us to be more ambitious in tackling climate change and we’ve stepped up to that challenge. This is a core part of our social contract with the communities we serve, and the environment we protect.”

Anglian Water is the only water company to target, measure and report on its operational and capital carbon footprint and has done so since 2010. In 2015, the company received the Queens Award for Enterprise for Sustainable Development and was Business in the Community’s Responsible Business of the Year in 2017/18.

Peter has joined other business leaders to endorse the Climate Change Committee’s recommendation that the UK should set a net zero emissions target covering all sectors of the economy for 2050.

Previously, the target for the UK was to cut greenhouse gas emissions by 80% by 2050 against a 1990 baseline.

Anglian Water is one of the founding members of The Prince of Wales' Corporate Leaders Group, a collective whose members are committed to addressing their climate impact and ensuring resilience to the ever-increasing effects of climate change.

This endorsement comes just a week after Anglian Water signed an industry-wide ‘Public Interest Commitment’. This statement commits Anglian to continuing to deliver wider benefits to society and the environment above and beyond the provision of clean, fresh drinking water and water recycling services. Included within this commitment is a new goal for the whole sector to achieve net zero carbon emissions by 2030.

Peter continued: “Over recent years, Anglian has been working hard to deliver wider social and environmental benefits in the communities we serve - from tackling plastic wastefulness, to investing in skills in deprived communities, and creating new, thriving habitats for wildlife.

“The Commitment reflects a lot of what we’re already doing, and our intention is to build on it in a way that really means something for the millions of customers we look after, all day, every day. After all, we know our customers expect us to play a big role in tackling wider social and environmental challenges.”